Aside from all of the normal obstacles entrepreneurs encoun- ter, Pamela Bosco, president of Pet King Brands, had her own extra set of hurdles to overcome when she started the company. She was a stay-at-home mom caring for three children and an ill husband, but when she saw an opportunity to create a
new kind of pet healthcare product, she seized it. Almost 20 years later,
the company has a full line of skin, ear and oral care, with plans in the
works for many new innovations in the coming years.

Bosco’s brother, Michael Pellico, had created a patented enzyme
system that was formulated for use on the skin and in the mouth. It
was being used in oral care
products for humans to treat
dry mouth when Bosco began to look into adapting the
formula for use in animals.

The idea was sparked by her
own difficulty finding an effective treatment for her own
German Shepherd’s chronic
ear infections and further fueled by a veterinarian friend,
who had commented on the
limited options for good ear
care products on the market
at the time. After making adaptations to make the formula safe for use with animals,
she introduced the ZYMOX
brand in 1998 with a product
for the treatment of dogs and
cats with ear infections.

“I knew ZYMOX was go-ing to revolutionize the waypeople helped animals with painful ear infections because ZYMOXworked without antibiotics,” she says. “Since that time, I have developeda complete line of dermatology and oral care products for veterinariansand retailers, all utilizing the patented enzyme formulation created bymy brother.”Several features of the ZYMOX and Oratene brands have helpedthem stand out in the marketplace from the beginning. In addition tobeing antibiotic free, the products are safe for long-term use and havebeen designed to be easy to use. Their brushless oral care products, inparticular, were a major innovation at a time when brushing was reallythe only method for removingplaque biofilm from pets’ teeth.The Oratene Brushless wateradditives and toothpaste gelsoffered a much simpler andfaster way for owners to ad-dress their pets’ oral health.When the brand firstlaunched, ZYMOX productswere solely available throughveterinarians. The companychose to start out in the vet-erinary channel because it wasthe most direct route to reachpet owners looking for skinand ear care solutions.

“Ear infections and skin allergies are some of the most
common issues veterinarians
see” Bosco says. “We knew
we could help more animals,
initially, by working with the
veterinarian.”